The Newcomes

Thackeray's The Newcomes (1855) follows the lives and fortunes of the respectable Newcome family and satirizes Victorian snobbery. The humble Colonel Thomas Newcome has two step-brothers, Brian and Hobson, and a son, Clive, whom he loves passionately. The Colonel is forced to send Clive to England after the death of his wife so that he can begin his education. Thomas wants Clive to marry his prosperous cousin Ethel, but her family will not accept a Clive because he plans to be an artist.